Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite meal planning tips with you!

5 Tips for Successfully Meal Planning

1. Decide what schedule works for you. Some people like to meal plan weekly while others like to make their meal plan for the entire month. Decide what works best for your schedule and family, then stick with it!

2. Keep organized! It doesn’t matter if you write out your menu on a chalkboard, an app on your phone or a piece of paper, just make sure you set up a system that you can work with. I personally like to use this meal planning notepad. However, I keep my grocery list on my phone using an app called Wunderlist.

3. Have a list of meals your family likes to eat. Keep a running database of any family dishes. You can do this on a Pinterest board, on your phone, in a recipe binder or any other way you’d like.

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4. Shop online! It might sound crazy but my favorite thing to spend money on is groceries so it doesn’t take much for me to go over budget when grocery shopping. I have found that grocery shopping online saves me a ton of money! I typically go grocery shopping every two weeks, so I come up with my budget for those two weeks, go to Walmart.com and get all the items I need for our meal and any household staples. Once all the main items are in the cart, I see how much I have left over to spend. Whatever is left over, I splurge on snacks and fun items. (If you want a $10 off coupon for online grocery shopping at Walmart, email me!)

5. Plan your meals based on your schedule. If you know your daughter has soccer practice on Monday night, don’t plan to cook a huge meal. Instead, pick dinner ideas that will suit your schedule based on any activities you have going on.

What are your best meal planning tips? Let us know in the comments! 

If you enjoyed this post, make sure to check out some of my other popular posts! 

 How Meal Planning Can Save You Time & Money

Over 20 Fast & Easy Dinner Ideas

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Did you know that making your own bread is actually cheaper and healthier than buying store bread? Now I know you’re probably thinking that it takes time to mix, knead, let it rise and bake the bread. But with a bread machine, you can make home-baked breads quickly and easily and have the added advantage of making each loaf a healthy addition to your diet.

A bread machine allows you to skip the mixing and kneading. Even better, if you own one of the newer bread machines, there is a dough cycle which makes an even easier process. New bread machines even have dough cycles which stop the dough from processing after the first cycle of rising. You can then form the dough into shapes such as rolls, pizza crust or baguette loaves.

On a gluten-free diet? Not to worry, there are bread machines with gluten-free menu settings! You can use gluten free and organic baking ingredients that you couldn’t use with older models of bread machines.

You’ll also love the quick baking options which allows you to have hot bread in less than a couple of hours!

Now, bread machines do everything for you except slicing and eating it and in such a limited amount of time that you’ll be amazed. Bread machines are versatile, too. They’re not just for bread anymore.

I’m sure you can see how a bread machine would save you a lot of money compared to buying store bought sandwich bread but let’s step it up a bit!

You can also make homemade french bread. One of my favorite things to do is to infuse my bread with healthy herbs and spices. Add some garlic & freshly chopped rosemary to your bread. It goes great with pasta dishes!

You’ll also be saving money by using a bread machine. The cost of healthy loaves of bread in a supermarket has skyrocketed in the past few years and it seems the taste has deteriorated.

You’ll now be able to give your family healthy sandwiches and other baked bread with very little work on your part! Seriously, does it get any better than that?

Keep in mind that there are expensive models and less expensive models on the market. You’ll need to decide what is best for your family. Also, make sure to grab a good cookbook for bread machine recipes!

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One of my least favorite cooking tasks is chopping up vegetables and herbs. Thankfully, I’ve now found a super simple way to minimize the amount of time I spend chopping up herbs.

Not only does this product save me time but it also saves me money. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve started to cook a recipe only to find out I didn’t have all the required herbs. I end up sending my husband to the store for garlic, cilantro, basil or whatever it might be. I use the small amount required for the recipe and end up wasting the rest. Not ok!

Thankfully, Dorot has a nice selection of frozen herbs that you can get at your local Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods.

So, where will you find these amazing frozen herbs? In the freezer section!

The Dorot products:
• Crushed Garlic
• Chopped Parsley
• Chopped Basil
• Glazed Onions
• Chopped Dill
• Chopped Cilantro
• Chopped Chili
• Crushed Ginger

As you can see there is a great selection! I picked up the crushed garlic and chopped basil since those seem to be the two things I always need to have on hand.

Dorot is offering a $1 off coupon for anyone interested in trying out the products.

The Dorot products are all natural, vegan and gluten free! The herbs come in small cube sizes making it perfect for cooking!

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20 Pantry Staples to Keep on Hand

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Most of the time I do have meat in the freezer, so I use these items in combination with meat. However, there have been plenty of times when I didn’t have meat on hand and was able to make a simple meal using pantry items.

1. Dried Lentils. You can really stretch a meal with dried lentils and they are so easy to make!

2. Pasta. I always keep several boxes of pasta on hand. Every time I go grocery shopping I pick up pasta.

3. Canned Foods. I’m a huge fan of canned vegetables, so I always have several cans on hand. It’s a quick and easy way to add to any meal.

4. Soup Broths. Having a variety of broths on hand are nice to have when making a quick soup or pan sauce.

5. Canned Tomatoes. I love having canned tomatoes on hand, you can do so much with them. Make spaghetti sauce, add it to ground beef and much more.

6. Rice. Having rice on hand is a great way to stretch any meal you make. You can add veggies to rice, meat or anything else that you’d like.

7. Bread Crumbs. These always come in handy when I’m breading meat.

8. Yeast. I have been known to make dinner rolls, sandwich bread and several other baked items. Lesson learned, keep yeast on hand!

9. Flour. If you do any cooking at all then you know how useful flour is. I use flour a lot when cooking. Umm, I love making a good pan sauce.

10. Jarred Sauces. While these aren’t my favorite, I do like to keep a few on hand for those super quick dinners.

11. Powdered Milk. Typically, we always have milk in the house but I have found that having powdered milk on hand comes in handing when baking.

12. Extra-virgin Olive Oil. You can make a great sauce with herb, seasoning and extra-virgin olive oil.

13. Dried Herbs. Herbs can take a boring meal up a notch. I always have dried herbs on hand!

14. A Variety of Seasonings. You can not have enough seasonings in my opinion. I like my food packed with flavor.

15. Canned Tuna. I usually have tuna for lunch but you can definitely make a dinner with a can of tuna.

16. Gravy Mixes. I prefer to make my own gravy and pan sauces but it doesn’t hurt to have a few packs of gravy mixes on hand.

17. Baking Soda. Again, baking soda comes in handy for baking.

18. Coffee. If you know me at all then you know that I LOVE my coffee! However, you can also use coffee for making a quick rub on a steak.

19. Applesauce. I like to keep applesauce on hand for the kids when they want a snack or I just want to add a little something extra to their dinner plate.

20. Tomato Paste. Just like canned tomatoes, tomato paste comes in handy more than you think!

If you enjoyed this post on pantry staples, make sure to check out some of my other posts. 

Meal Planning

How Meal Planning Saves You Time & Money

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I’ve recently talked about my son playing football. I absolutely love that he is only ten but has such a deep passion for the sport. He doesn’t just go out on the field and play, he studies the game! However, allowing him to play means that as a family we give make some big sacrifices. Football is 5 days a week for two hours a night, which this might not seem like much, I have to drive him to football which is 30-minutes away.

We end up having a lot of late night dinners or quick snacks in the car. The key to ensuring that my son and the rest of the family keep their energy up is selecting the right snacks. Empty calories won’t benefit us at all!

Quick and Easy Snack Options

Yogurt is huge on our list! To be specific, we always select Yoplait®, this has been my brand of choice since I was a young child. A lot of people associate yogurt with breakfast, but you can really enjoy it any time of day. I love that it’s portable, easy to eat in the car and isn’t full of empty calories. Since I do most of my shopping at Walmart it’s really helpful that they always have a great selection of flavors and other varieties like the Original, Light, Greek, Gogurt®. While we normally just stick with the traditional plain yogurt, the Gogurt® is a great option for back to school lunches.

Granola is another option we keep on hand since we can easily mix it into the Yoplait® yogurt cup. It’s perfect and provides a nice crunch.

Summer is here and my fridge is stocked with fresh fruit. Yum! I typically purchase plain Yoplait® yogurt and mix in some fruit for my family. It’s an easy way to change up the flavor and always keep things interesting. Add in a bit of honey for an extra pop of flavor!

What are some of your favorite on the go snack options?

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Yoplait®. The opinions and text are all mine.

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Meal planning is the process of picking what meals you’ll be eating for the next few days or even a week in advance. It involves making a list of what you’ll be wanting to cook for each meal and what ingredients will be needed for those meals. This means that you’ll only need to shop once during that time and you’ll already know exactly what you’re going to make.

How Meal Planning Saves You Time and Money

Meal planning saves a huge amount of time. You’ll no longer have to run to the grocery store several times a week, which can eat up time, especially if you have to drag your kids along for each trip. And, all those hours spent standing in front of an open fridge wondering what you’ll make? You don’t have to worry about that anymore, because as soon as it’s time to eat, all you have to do is look at your pre-planned menu and pull out your pre-bought ingredients.

This time-saving isn’t just for those with families, either. No matter what the amount you’re cooking, planning your meals out will save you just as much time. Meal planning works perfectly, especially if there are leftovers. They can be packed up for used for lunches or even be eaten at a later meal.

Not only does meal planning save time, it also saves money. By knowing exactly what you need, you won’t be buying extras or unnecessary items. When people grocery shop without a very specific list, they tend to grab more food than they need, some of which they won’t even use. Meal planning encourages looking at what you already have in your pantry, so you’re only purchasing the things you’re missing. When you take the time to really think it through, you actually have more food than you realize.

Meal planning also saves you from a bunch of stress. Organization can bring relief to an otherwise chaotic life. Meal planning is a way of creating a system, which will order your life in a whole new way. You’ll feel less worried about what you’ll be eating and what you’ll be spending on that food. And knowing those two things makes the rest of the stresses of the world seem just a little bit less.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure to check out my weekly meal plans.

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I hope you enjoy the tasty dishes I picked out for you this week.

Meal Planning Ideas Week 16

Monday – Bacon Grilled Cheese Braid. Ya’ll know how much I love bacon and this dish looks amazing!

Tuesday – Easy Breakfast Tacos. Yes, I know this is a breakfast dish but my family loves breakfast for dinner.

Wednesday – Easy Fried Rice. Fried rice is always a hit in my house and I can’t wait to give this a try.

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Thursday – Chicken Avocado Burritos. Yes, please! Avocado’s are one of my favorite things and make everything taste that much better.

Friday – Taco Lasagna. Doesn’t this look delicious? Not to mention it’s an easy Friday night dinner.

Saturday – Balsamic Chicken and Veggies. This looks so elegant yet it’s so easy to make!

Sunday – Italian Chicken Bake. This dish is so an easy to make. It’s a must for those busy nights.

If you want a tasty drink to go along with your dinner, check out my Root Beer Martini!

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Meal Planning Week 15

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Meal Planning Week 14

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I hope you enjoys the menu this week!

Meal Planning Ideas

Monday – Cheesy Burrito Casserole I love burritos and I’m interested to see what this will taste like. I’m willing to bet it’s amazing.

Tuesday – Sweet & Sour Chicken All I can say is yum! I love sweet & sour chicken.

Wednesday – Tomato and Macaroni Soup I’ve never tried anything like this before but it sparked my interest. I can’t wait to taste it.

Thursday – Eggroll in A Bowl Seriously, this look delicious. I’m a big fan of egg rolls so this should be a fun dish.

Friday – Baked Chicken with Broccoli  Easy dishes are a must in my book and this one is very easy.

Saturday – Baked Spaghetti The idea of baked spaghetti sounds so good. I’m sure the kids will love this dish.

Sunday – Chicken Salad Sandwich I’m hoping to have some left over chicken from other dishes and this will be a great way to make use of leftovers.

If you missed last weeks meal plan you can find it here: Week 9 of Menu Planning

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